Electronic exchanges utilize established rules and regulations in furtherance of trades between buyers and sellers. Electronic exchanges operate by an electronic or telecommunications network to facilitate trading in an efficient, versatile, and functionally rich way. The volume on electronic exchanges has grown over the years and at present dwarfs the volume traded on historical open outcry exchanges in which buyers and sellers physically meet on the floor to trade.
An electronic exchange generally sends messages to traders over a communication link. The data, in a raw form, sometimes include things like an opening price, the price of the last trade, the quantity of the last trade, quantity available at the best sell price, quantity available at the best buy price, quantity available at additional buy and sell prices, and the closing price. Of course, an electronic exchange can include more or fewer items, often depending on the type of tradeable object or the type of exchange. Typically, the messages vary in size depending on the content carried by them, but at the receiving end, software is programmed to understand the messages and act out certain operations.
One particular, yet important, operation is preparing the information for display to the trader. The trading screen can be the only direct connection a trader has with the internal workings of an exchange. Many systems that have been used in the financial sector have had data on a trading screen generally consistent with the manner in which it was received from the exchange without much customization or formatting. Because of the simplicity of such display schemes, the screens could be updated very quickly for a large number of tradeable objects. However, this has been at the expense of a non-intuitive design.
More recently, attention has been given to adapting trading screens to the intended use. For instance, more attention has been given to analyzing what makes an effective trading screen, thereby resulting in the design of more intuitive displays and quicker order entry systems. Depending on the actual formatting and layout, however, some trading screens have enjoyed a better reception among traders than others in conveying market information.
To develop an effective and intuitive screen, the developer should have an understanding and an appreciation for those who trade. More times than not, spotting an opportunity in a market and capitalizing on it before the competition can separate those traders who are successful from those traders who are not. An important component in capitalizing on an opportunity involves the efficient assimilation and processing of market information by the trader, in addition to reacting more quickly than other competing market participants.
It is with respect to these and other considerations that the disclosure made herein is presented.